How to Play Tiny Thor – Tips and Tricks

Retro platformers are adored for their charming visuals and challenging gameplay, and Tiny Thor is the ultimate love letter to that whole genre. Thor’s birthday has finally arrived, and Odin has bestowed upon him the mighty Mjölnir. A dastardly foe threatens the world, and it is up to Thor to save the day. If you are looking for some pointers on how to play Tiny Thor, our Tiny Thor tips and tricks guide has you covered.

Tiny Thor tips & tricks playing guide

Whether you are a seasoned platformer veteran or you are completely new to the genre, Tiny Thor has something for everyone. True to its retro inspirations, Tiny Thor can get very challenging, but do not worry, as dying only sends you back to the last checkpoint, and you have infinite lives. Our Tiny Thor tips and tricks should help you conquer this adventure.

Explore every nook and cranny

Tiny Thor is, at its core, a retro platformer inspired by the 16-bit era of gaming. What that means is that there are plenty of platforms to jump on, areas to explore, shiny gems to collect, and baddies to bash.

Starting out, controlling Thor is simple and easy. You can move him with the d-pad or left stick, and use the A button to jump. Once he gets the Mjölnir, he can toss it with the X button to defeat enemies. You can also jump on some enemies to take them out too.

There are two main currencies in the game: red diamonds and blue gems. The blue gems are the most common, and you will see these all over the place. Collect as many as you can, because you need them to purchase power ups and upgrades later on.

Red diamonds are a lot rarer, as there are only three per level. They are often placed in tricky spots, so you usually need to solve some sort of environmental puzzle to reach them. Red diamonds are primarily used to unlock challenge level gates.

The bottom line is that in order to collect as many blue gems and red diamonds as possible, take your time when you are going through the levels. Explore every nook and cranny to get all the gems possible!

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Take full advantage of the Mjölnir

Thor’s main form of defense is of course the mighty Mjölnir, a hammer with blessed lightning coursing through it. Press the X button by default to toss it in the direction Thor is currently facing. You can also hold down RT to use precision aim, useful for hitting things on a different level than you.

The Mjölnir is a mighty weapon, and it is more versatile than it first seems. Mjölnir continuously bounces until it hits Thor, so when angled right, you can bounce it off of walls and multiple enemies. In fact, the game encourages you to line up precise shots, since some enemies comes in groups waiting to be walloped.

You can recall Mjölnir back to Thor at any time by pressing the X button when it is flying. It takes a split second for it to come back to Thor, but it is better than waiting for it to come back on its own.

Remember that Mjölnir always bounces off the edge of the screen, and will not fly off-screen, even if there is no physical wall present. You can take advantage of this to defeat certain enemies.

One common maneuver you will utilize a lot is the Mjölnir boomerang. This is done by tossing Mjölnir, then wait for it to bounce off an enemy or wall. On its return trip, jump over it instead of catching it to make it keep bouncing back and forth.

Move carefully and stay healthy

Thor is a growing boy, so unfortunately he is a bit on the fragile side. Thor goes down in one hit, so it is imperative you focus on dodging enemy attacks. Take out enemies quickly to ease up the pressure.

Thankfully, Thor can find heart power ups scattered throughout the level. These hearts have numbers on them, and grabbing one turns Thor’s tunic red. In this state, if Thor receives damage, he gets knocked back and the heart flies out of him, taking the brunt of the hit.

The heart begins to countdown from whatever number was on it, and if it hits zero, the heart is gone for good. If Thor can grab the heart before it disappears, he can take another hit once more. Any more heart power ups you find add on to the total amount of time you have before the heart disappears.

It is best to take things slow and methodical, so that you do not get surprised by too many enemies at once. If you get hit, try to scramble for the heart as quickly as you can.

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Search for secret areas

Taking another page out of retro platformers, there are lots of fake walls in Tiny Thor. If you get close to a fake wall, it disperses, revealing a secret area that is usually full of gems.

Make sure to toss Mjölnir often, even if there are no enemies present. Mjölnir flies right through fake walls, so if you notice that it does not bounce back to you, there is a fake wall there!

Revisit old levels with new upgrades

Although Tiny Thor plays mostly like a level-based linear platformer like Super Mario Bros., it also contains some light Metroidvania aspects. Thor gains new permanent upgrades once you progress far enough, and these upgrades are usually new movement options.

Thor eventually gets the ability to double jump, wall jump, and more as he goes through his coming-of-age story. As he recovers more Norn runes, more abilities become available to him.

As you play through Tiny Thor, you may come across certain levels that have seemingly impossible-to-reach gems in some areas. If you encounter this, do not worry about it too much; just complete the level and come back later once you have new upgrades. You are meant to revisit old levels to reach gems that you could not before, using the new abilities.

Also, do not forget to stop by the Trinket Treetop Shop, where you can purchase helpful upgrades with all the blue gems you have collected. These upgrades are not as crucial as your movement upgrades, but they are still helpful.

Bash the bosses

At the end of every major area lies a powerful boss. Levels that contain a boss in them are denoted with a skull icon, so you know what to expect.

Every boss in Tiny Thor is a test of your abilities that you have learned thus far. For example, the first boss, the Stone Crusher, tests your ability to destroy multiple objects with one Mjölnir toss.

Every boss in the game is designed this way, so take a moment to study the boss’ moves and openings before striking. These guys can be quite challenging, but be patient, learn their patterns, and you will be victorious!

Tiny Thor is quite the challenging experience, so if you have any other tips or tricks for making it through the levels, let us know in the comments below!